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Water Framework Directive in Scotland (WFD)

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) was introduced in 2000 to establish systems to manage Europe’s water environment - rivers, lochs, estuaries and coastal waters.

Scotland has a high quality water environment which is important for our health and well-being, supports a rich diversity of wildlife, attracts visitors and provides for the sustainable growth of our economy.

However some areas of our water environment are under considerable pressure from human activity. The WFD introduced a system of river basin management planning to help us tackle these pressures.

In December 2015 the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) published the second round of River Basin Management Plans, which build on those issued in 2009.